Tennessee's Karlyn Pickens and Texas Tech's NiJaree Canady were the top two picks in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League draft on Monday night.
Pickens went to the Carolina Blaze, where she will play
in her home state of North Carolina. She got the softball world's attention last season when she fired a pitch 79.4 mph during super regionals — the fastest pitch on record. This season, she has a 13-7 record with a 1.44 earned run average and 154 strikeouts in 112 innings.
“Our staff believes Karlyn is the whole package,” Blaze general manager Dana Sorensen said in a statement. “She is an ultimate competitor, and we feel that four years pitching in the SEC has given her the best preparation for the pro league."
The Texas Volts chose Canady, who made waves by signing two deals worth more than $1 million at Texas Tech. She has a 21-4 record this season with a 1.30 ERA and 194 strikeouts in 135 innings. She led the Red Raiders to a national runner-up finish last season.
Belmont pitcher Mya Johnson went third to the Oklahoma City Spark. She leads the nation with a 0.72 earned run average.
The 17 players selected were previously identified through AUSL’s Golden Ticket program, which included on-campus presentations across the country in recent weeks. The season begins June 9.
UCLA's Megan Grant went fourth to the Portland Cascade. She ranks second nationally with 35 home runs. Florida's Jocelyn Erickson went sixth to the Chicago Bandits. UCLA's Jordan Woolery, who has 33 home runs and leads the nation with 106 RBIs, went seventh to the Utah Talons to close out the first round.
Second round picks were Texas' Reese Atwood (Carolina) and Leighann Goode (Texas Volts), Arizona's Sydney Stewart (Portland), Mississippi State's Peja Goold (OKC), Stanford's Taryn Kern (Chicago) and UCLA's Taylor Tinsley (Utah).
Third rounders were Oklahoma's Ailana Agbayani (Chicago), Oregon's Amari Harper (OKC), Arizona State's Kenzie Brown (Portland) and Arkansas' Dakota Kennedy (Carolina).
Portland made Florida's Kenleigh Cahalan the final overall selection.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
